Giant Centipede Wins!

I hope you all stayed up to watch Building of the Year: the RIBA Stirling Prize 2006 on Channel 4 last Sunday/Monday. No? Same here. 4.25am is a bit late ... or early, depending on your point of view. At least Channel 4 covered the event. Top prize went to Richard Rogers Partnership for its fantastic giant centipede design for Barajas Airport in Madrid. Don't mention co-architect Estudio Lamela, because his name sounds foreign and the Royal Institute of British Architects doesn't give its top award to foreigners. Why should it? It's a Brit. institution. It's job is to promote Brit. architecture and Brit. architects. Anyway, foreign architects design buildings that fall down when snow lands on the roof. We might have the odd wobbly bridge, but that's only when pedestrians do the unexpected, like marching in step.